Restless
by Ice-Skating-Angel
Summary: Ziva comes into work late three times in one week...Tony is determined to find out why she has been so tired. TIVA eventually. May surprise you!
1. Late again

_**AN: Hey Guys, yeah im still working on Three Months but i had this story in my head and decided to start it to! It moves pretty slowly in this chapter but will pick up in the next chapter (sorry but the story wouldn't work without this brief intro) Thanks again to Sophie for editing this and also to all the people who have given me really useful advise.**_

_**Thanks Love Elle**_

_**xoxo**_

* * *

**Chapter 1**

Ziva was late.

It was the third time this week and Tony was starting to worry about her. Every time he mentioned this to Ziva he was quickly brushed off and was told that she just slept in. His thoughts were interrupted when he heard the ding of the elevator and watched as a tired Ziva emerged from the doors. She quickly ran to her desk turning on her computer.

"Nice of you to join us Ziva…your lucky Gibbs hasn't noticed that you were late again today." Tony said playfully but instead of her usual smart reply Ziva simply glared at Tony with a slight frown pulling on her lips.

"Don't even start Tony I haven't had a decent nights sleep in almost a week now, I just need to get through today so I can spend the weekend catching up on some rest" Ziva turned her attention back to her work before Gibbs entered the room and started handing out orders.

"Tony, Ziva, I need you to head over to the captains house and check it over again…the next-door neighbour reported noises coming from the house last night. Look for any signs of a brake in… What are you waiting for…GO!"

In less than one minute Tony and Ziva were on their way down to their car. _Today was going to be a long day,_ Ziva thought with a sigh.

_Much later that day:_

Ziva looked over at the clock hanging on the wall behind her as she shut down her computer for the night. Eight o'clock, not to bad. She would be able to leave NCIS headquarters only two hours late today. She needed a good weekends rest to help her catch up with the past week.

"So Ziva, have any plans for the weekend?" DiNozzo asked as he too shut down his computer.

"Sleep!" she simply stated before gathering her gear and heading out, leaving behind a confused Tony. _What was wrong with Ziva? She hadn't been her usual self this week._

Tony was determined to get to the bottom of the problem before the end of the weekend.

* * *

**_Thanks for reading guys...one small thing...could you please review. The more reviews i get the quicker i will update. Thanks_**

**_Elle xoxo_**


	2. Secrets uncovered

_**Hi guys, I actually had this chapter written a few days ago but my computer was being so slow that i gave up trying to upload it! Anyway...i know this is a little 'out of character' but it was in my head so i had to write it... Let me know what you think of it.**_

_**Ziva xoxo  
**_

* * *

**Chapter 2**

Ziva was woken from yet another night of little sleep by the insistent ringing of the phone by her bed. Rolling over with a groan, she answered with a groggy voice.

"WHAT!" she said turning to look at the clock.

"Ziva?! Its Tony..." Came the voice on the other line.

"Tony, its 8am on a Sunday morning and I have had no sleep…Good-bye," Ziva said slamming the phone back into the cradle. She lay in silence for a minute, staring at the ceiling before her mobile began to ring.

"Tony…" Ziva answered the phone angrily, but she didn't get anything else in before DiNozzo interrupted her.

"We have a case, Gibb's said to get you in to NCIS within half an hour…and we have already wasted five minutes of that time arguing, so just get here as soon as possible coz I don't wanna have to explain to Gibbs why you are not here." Came Tony's reply before the line went dead.

* * *

_NCIS Headquarters._

"Tony, I thought I told you to have Officer David here by 0830…Why cant I see her?"

"Well boss I called her, twice in fact…she wasn't real happy by the way" The special agent replied "…something about being tired and having no sleep" he added with a mumble.

The silence of the room was soon disrupted by the ding of the elevator doors opening into the squad room. What happened next shocked Tony to silence.

Ziva entered the room balancing a crying baby on one hip and a coffee in the other hand. She was using her free hip to and coffee filled hand to push a pram with a slightly older child sitting in it happily playing with a stuffed animal. She as she guided the pram across the room Tony noted how exhausted she looked. And he apparently now knew why. _Who where these kids with Ziva?_

Ziva looked up at the three men staring at her.

"Well don't all jump up to help!"

Suddenly the squad room became a buzz of activity. McGee took her backpack and coffee whilst Tony pushed the pram over to her desk, still partially in shock. Leaving Ziva to comfort the crying baby.

Gibbs just stood staring at Ziva. His stare was matched by Ziva, both waiting for the other to speak. Finally Gibbs broke the silence.

"This isn't bring the kids to work day Ziva" He was testing to see how Ziva would react to the children being called her kids.

"Well what was I supposed to do Gibbs?" she replied, "…It only 8.45 on a Sunday morning! No daycare centres are open and my neighbours refused to open the door."

Tony and McGee watched the interaction closely; Ziva hadn't denied that the children were hers.

"Look Gibbs, ill take the girls up to stay with Jen and then we can talk…Tony can you give me a hand please?" she asked handing the wriggling baby over to Tony whilst she lifted the other girl out of the pram.

The pair carried the kids up the stairs to the Directors office. A look in Ziva's eyes caused Tony not to press any of this mornings issues. They knocked on Jen's office door and waited to be told to enter. Ziva looked over at Tony who was playing with the little girl in his arms, making cooing noises.

"She likes you," she said with a smile.

"Yeah well, what's not to like?…I'm full of DiNozzo charm"

They were interrupted by the door to the office opening.

"Ziva! Girls! What are you doing here?" Jenny called out

"Aunty Jenny!!" called the young girl in Ziva's arms as she practically jumped from her spot into the director's arms.

"I'm sorry to do this to you Jen but can they stay here for the day…we have a case" Ziva spoke up.

"Sure…come and get them when you have finished for the day…we are going to have some fun girls!" she replied placing the older child on the floor and taking the baby from Tony's arms. Ziva placed a baby bag on the couch in the office before thanking her boss and leaving.

* * *

_Back in the Squad Room_

Ziva sat at her desk typing away at her computer. She choose to ignore the three sets of eyes on her.

"So Officer David, care to explain what just happened?" Gibbs asked out loud.

Choosing to ignore the question Ziva responded, "We got a hit on the Bolo we place on the black 98 Jetta…I'm going to go check it out" she said reaching for her coat. Gibbs took her coat off the back of her chair before she had a chance to get to it.

"Not until I know what is going on" Gibbs replied matching Ziva's stare. Finally Ziva looked away mumbling under her breath,

"I don't need my coat anyway" she said bitterly before heading for the elevator.

Tony, who had been watching this whole exchange quickly packed up his gear and followed her. He caught up just as the doors were beginning to close.

"What are you doing?" Ziva asked.

"We are partners ZeeVah…I'm supposed to go with you" he replied. They spent the rest of the way down to the car in silence. Taking the keys from Ziva's hands, Tony was slightly surprised that she didn't argue with him. It was a 20minute trip to the warehouse where the car was spotted, and neither of them spoke a word for the first 10 mins. When suddenly, out of the blue Ziva cried out.

"They are mine…the girls, they're mine"

Tony looked over at her briefly as he drove and decided to pull over.

"okay…do you want to tell me the whole story? You don't have to, coz its none of my business but…," words were escaping him at the moment so he chose to dig around in his pocket to find her a tissue, "look Ziva I'm just trying to help, so if you wanna talk we can…otherwise I'm happy to just sit here a while" he locked eyes with his partner, trying to comfort her.

They sat in silence for another minute before Ziva spoke up again.

"I can't do this right now, after work…I promise Tony…I just thought you should know."

Her voice was barely above a whisper.

* * *

**_Please review guys and girls...im curious to know what you think._**

**_Once again a big round of applause to my good friend Sophie for her unique take on the world (we are too much alike its not funny!) Your advice is appreciated _**


	3. Dinner and a story

_**Okay, here is the next chapter. I'm leaving for America in two days so i wont be able to update until i get back (Don't worry though ill be back on the 17th!! just think of the writing i can do spending 21 hours on a plane) I'm not sure where to take this story so plz gimme any ideas you've got.**_

_**thanks**_

_**Ziva**_

* * *

Tony sat at his desk finishing up the report on the day's case. Well, he was trying to. His mind kept wandering to his Israeli partner and what she might tell him when they had a chance to speak about the morning's events. 

Tony looked at his watch. 4.00, Ziva had probably already gone home, forgetting that she had promised to talk to him after work. _Oh well,_ Tony thought,_ That's her decision to make._

He sighed and went on typing up his report with more focus than before. He was shaken from his thoughts by a voice in front of him

"Are you ready to go yet?"

Tony looked up to see Ziva standing in front of him.

"Oh…I ummm…" Tony stumbled with his words.

"Sip it out Tony, I'm tired, I want to go home."

Ziva was back to her old jokes and incorrect English. Relaxing more around her Tony replied,

"I think you mean, Spit it out Zee Vaa, and I was going to say that I thought you had already left for the night"

"I promised I would tell you the full story, so I will." Ziva replied sincerely, " Will you help me get the girls and then meet me at my place for dinner?"

"umm ok, sure." Tony said, He shut down his computer and packed up his gear. He pushed the empty pram to the elevator, waiting for the doors to open. He looked over at Ziva, scanning her face for any type of emotion. Her face portrayed sadness, happiness and confusion all at the same time. She forced a smile as the doors opened.

They were sent straight into the director's office by Cynthia. As they Ziva walked in the door she was pounced on by a mess of black hair.

"Ima!, I have been waiting for you. What took you so long?" The little girl said with her hands on her hips. Ziva bent over to give the child a hug.

"I'm sorry Tali, I had to work, did you have fun with Aunty Jen?" She replied looking over at the director who was watching the exchange from her desk with the youngest of the children in her lap.

The girl eagerly nodded her head looking over at Tony.

"Who are you?" She asked loudly. Tony chuckled at the girl's confidence. That was obviously a trait she had got from Ziva.

Ziva moved to explain to the three year old who he was but Tony stopped her. He got down on his knees and spoke to the little girl.

"I'm a friend of your mom's from work," He began, "I need your mom's help with something so I'm going to come over to your house for dinner. Is that okay?"

The little girl seemed to think about it before replying.

"Do you have a badge…ima said I is only allowed to talk to people who have a badge like she does."

Ziva smiled at the response from her daughter, that hadn't quite been what she had told her but it was close enough.

She moved to pick up the younger child from the director's lap.

"Thank you so much for looking after them today Jen, I owe you." She said as she placed the baby into the pram.

"Don't mention it Ziva, you know I welcome any chance to spend time with my favourite nieces. You two have fun tonight." She replied giving Ziva a knowing look. She understood that Ziva had a lot to explain to the special agent and it wasn't going to be easy for her. She just hoped DiNozzo was ready for what she had to say.

The pair left the director's office. Ziva pushed the pram whilst Tony carried Tali. When they reached Ziva's car, Tony helped get the kids into the car seats and informed Ziva he would meet them at her house in half and hour he wanted to get a bottle of wine to lighten the atmosphere first.

* * *

_ Ziva's apartment_

Ziva didn't know why she was suddenly nervous. Tony already knew the girls were hers. She was currently pacing in the kitchen looking for something to eat. She had invited Tony over for dinner but at this stage she didn't know what she was going to cook. The Girls were down for their afternoon nap.

Ziva jumped as the doorbell rang.

Opening the door, she found Tony nervously waiting with a bottle of wine. She laughed at the two of them stepping aside to let Tony in.

"I'm just trying to decide what we are going to have for dinner, how does spaghetti sound?"

"Great, what can I do to help?" Tony asked.

"How about I give you a tour of the house first… The girls are going to wake up in a little while so you wont get a chance then."

She led Tony down a hallway pointing out the bathroom and study. When she got to a door on the right she put her finger to her lips as if to say be quiet. She opened the door to a little pink room.

"This is Taliha's room. She is almost three." Ziva said with a whisper. She moved over to the bed where a sleeping Tali was curled up. She ran her hand softly through the little girls black curls.

She then led Tony to another door, this time on the right of the room. This door led to a purple room equipped with cot, change table.

"This is Adiya's room"

"How old is she?" Tony asked

"Ten months next week" Ziva replied as she closed the door to Addy's bedroom.

"So Tali and Addy, hey? They look like you" Tony joked to cover up the awkwardness.

"Look Tony, I know you probably want to know what's going on but ill have to wake the girls up soon so that they actually get some sleep tonight…ill tell you the full story when they go to bed tonight…Now lets get the spaghetti started." Ziva said in an attempt to change the subject. She knew that Tony could probably see she was trying to avoid the issue and she was just thankful he hadn't pushed it further.

Half an hour later they were both in the kitchen. Tony was stirring a pot on the stove while sipping at a glass of wine. He stuck his finger in to taste the bolognaise they had made.

"This is good…have I ever told you that I make the best spaghetti bolognaise ever?"

"Yes Tony, only about a thousand times in the last twenty minutes." Ziva replied with mocked annoyance, " I'm going to go wake the girls up."

She returned five minutes later carrying the sleepy children. "Tali you remember my friend Tony don't you?" She said putting the three year old on the floor. Tali nodded and ran off to get something from her room.

"She has gone to get something to show you." Ziva explained to a confused Tony. She placed Adiya in her high chair and grabbed her a sippy cup from the fridge. She motioned for Tony to sit at the dinning table

Tali walked up to Tony and climbed up onto his lap. "Will you read me a story?" she asked him.

Tony looked over to Ziva for permission. When she nodded he turned back to the child.

"Sure, what story do you want me to read?"

They spent the next ten minutes reading Finding Nemo. Tali was giggling loudly as Tony acted out all the voices of the characters for her. Halfway through the story, Ziva entered the room with a bowl of mashed potato and pumpkin. Moving a chair up to the high chair she began supervising Adiya's attempts to feed herself as she listened to the end of the story.

When the story was over the three sat down to eat their dinner, whilst Addy fell asleep curled up into her mother.

"Hmmm, we definitely make the best spaghetti bolognaise in the world Ziva" Tony said as he patted his now full stomach.

"We? Don't you mean I?" Ziva teased, "all you did was stir the bowl and you only did that for five minutes!" She added with a yawn. Looking over at the clock on the wall reading 7.00.

"Okay nesikhati time for bed." Ziva said standing up. She moved to place the baby in her cot and lead the older child to her bedroom.

Tony listened to the giggling coming from the young girls room. He was surprised that most of it was actually coming from Ziva. This was a side of Ziva he had never seen before. Perhaps a side that no one had seen before. Ziva rarely talked about her personal life. He smiled at the thought that he was special.

"What are you grinning at Tony?" Ziva said as she re entered the room and began clearing away the dishes.

"I was just thinking that I like this new side of you Ziva." He said locking eyes with her.

In silence they stacked the dishwasher and moved to sit on the couch. They sat like that, in silence, for a few minutes before Ziva spoke up.

"It's not exactly something I'm proud of…I mean I love the girls and I wouldn't change them for the world…but I wish the circumstances could have been... different"

Tony turned on the lounge to face her, nodding his encouragement.

"Tali's father left five minutes after I told him I was pregnant. I couldn't believe how quickly he had his bags packed," Ziva spoke with furry in her voice, " I don't know why I expected him to act differently. We had only been together for a little while so it was a bit of a shock."

Tony was listening intently. He doubted Ziva had told many people the full story and he was still surprised she was sharing it with him.

"Adiya was different. I was… engaged to her father," Ziva paused to see Tony's reaction. He held a neutral face.

" We broke up peacefully, but then one night after a difficult mission… We were drunk and well…I think you get the rest. He was killed, street bombing, just before I found out I was pregnant." Ziva struggled with her words.

Tears started to form in Ziva's eyes.

"I didn't know what to do…I was barely coping to raise a two year old by myself and working at the same time… Director Shepard helped me a lot. She would watch Tali sometimes so I could go into work. She knew I needed to get away from Israel and Mossard for a while… Adiya was three months old when Jen offered me the chance to come work for NCIS… So far it has been one of the best decisions of my life"

Tony sat quietly for a few seconds before smiling and pulling Ziva into a big hug.

"Thank you for sharing that Ziva, I know it must have been hard"

* * *

_**What do you think?? I know its out of character but every other way i tried it it didn't sound right. Please let me know what you think. Thanks for all the reviews**_.

xoxo 


	4. Revelations

_**Sorry this took so long guys... i had a SERIOUS case of writers block and a mix that up with a coach who makes u train 14 hrs a week, uni assignments, work and family... really not a good mix.****Im sorry this chapter is a little slow.  
Thanks once again to sophie for editing if for me... i owe you one.  
Elle xoxo**_

* * *

Tony and Ziva sat in silence on the lounge half an hour later. Neither had spoken since Ziva had explained the situation. Tony's mind was still racing. Ziva had been engaged and had two daughters. He should feel angry that she had kept this from him but he couldn't. He understood why she had kept it from the team. If he were in the same situation he probably would have done the same. Ziva's mind was also racing. Tony hadn't run away the second she had told him. Instead he was still there with an arm around her as she rested against him. Tears were still running down her cheeks. Normally Ziva would have tried harder to hide her feelings but for some reason, she felt she didn't need to.

"It's getting late Ziva, you should go to bed… your exhausted and we have work tomorrow" Tony said, sitting up a little straighter.

"Ha, that is not going to do much good. Adiya has had the flu and has been waking up every couple of hours. Though, I admit she is getting better. That is why I have been so tired" Ziva said standing up and stretching.

"Then I am going to stay here tonight so that you can sleep and I'll get Adiya when she wakes up." Tony said rather proud of himself for coming up with a solution.

"No Tony, I can't let you do that. You have work tomorrow as well" Ziva argued with Tony's suggestion.

"Ziva, years of pulling all nighters for both college and Gibbs have made me immune from the need of sleep. I'll be fine for one night" Tony argued. "Anyway, if you don't get some sleep tonight you could pass out when we are on duty tomorrow, which wouldn't be much help for me" Tony added.

Ziva simply smiled at Tony and moved to get him some bedding.

"Ummm… Help yourself to anything you need. The bathroom is down the hall to the left." Ziva said, suddenly feeling nervous around the man getting ready to sleep on her couch, "Goodnight Tony."

* * *

Tony hadn't been asleep long before he was awoken by a soft cry coming from the baby's room. He sat up and checked his watch. 11.03. Making his way down the hall he peaked into Ziva's room where the door was slightly ajar. She still appeared to be asleep so Tony moved to get the young girl before she woke up everyone else. The second he entered the room, the crying stopped. He picked the young girl up out of her cot and sat down on a chair in the corner of the room. As Tony spoke softly to the child in his arms, she slowly drifted off to sleep. After putting the child back in her cot, Tony sat back down and watched the child sleep. What was he doing here, in Ziva's house, looking after her daughter while she slept? He knew if this was any other woman he would have left at the mention of children. But something about Ziva was making him stay.

This wasn't the first time Tony found himself acting differently around Ziva. Sometimes he found himself sneaking a look over at her while she was at her desk or looking intently at something at a crime scene. There was something about being around her that made him relax. Tony shook the thoughts from his head. No matter what he was doing, his thoughts always ended up back on Ziva. While he was ready to admit it to anyone else just yet, Tony knew that he was beginning to develop feelings towards her that were different than the normal the partner and friend feelings.

Tony slowly drifted off to sleep in the chair, listening to the soft sounds of the baby snoring. His thoughts once again turned to Ziva. That was the only time he was woken that night.

* * *

Ziva woke up the next morning feeling fresh and relaxed after a full night's sleep. She rolled over and looked at the clock. 6.00am. She had slept in. Time to get the girls up.

Ziva walked into the lounge room to wake up Tony, only to find him not there. Curious she crept into her youngest daughters room. She smiled when she found Tony asleep in the corner of the room. She moved her hand through his hair and bent down to kiss his cheek before she stopped herself. What was she doing? This was Tony! The more Ziva argued with herself the more confused she felt. She had spent the last few months trying to sort out her feelings for Tony and now that she was standing there in her daughters room, everything seemed to make sense. She _loved _him!

Tony mumbled in his sleep. Scared of how close she had just come to being caught, Ziva quickly picked up her daughter and left the room to wake up Tali. She would let Tony sleep a while longer as she got the girls ready for day care.

She had gotten herself and the girls clean and dressed and now they were sitting down to breakfast. Ziva was listening to her eldest daughter talk about a new toy she had seen on the television that her mum just _had_ to buy her. Their breakfast was interrupted by the ringing of a cellphone. Looking at her own phone sitting on the table next to her, she realized the sound was coming from Tony's phone on the couch.

Picking it up she cringed when the caller ID read _"Gibbs"_.

She shook Tony awake.

"Tony, Tony! Gibbs is calling" Ziva said as she pushed the phone into Tony's hand. Mind still fogged by sleep, Tony answered the phone as he stood up and stretched. He followed Ziva back into the kitchen.

"DiNozzo"

"DiNozzo, Where are you? I have been trying to get hold of you for the past 20mins" Came the angry voice of his boss on the other line.

Tony screwed up his face and looked over at Ziva, "Ahh sorry boss, I didn't stay at my place last night"

Gibbs Grunted. He thought he had a fairly good idea where his senior agent had spent the night.

"We have a case," Gibbs explained, "Don't bother coming to the office first, meet me straight at the Address McGee sent to your phone… and tell Officer David to do the same, I will see you both in half an hour" he added with a smirk.

The line went dead.

Tony sat down at the down at the kitchen table next to Tali, giving her head a rub. _How did Gibbs know he was a Ziva's. Was it going to be an issue?_ Ziva placed a cup of coffee and toast in front of him and joined him.

"We have a case, yes?" she asked.

Tony nodded. "Gibbs wants us at the scene in half an hour, it's not too far from here."

Tali ran away to play and the still sleepy baby was busying herself playing with a rather noisy teddy bear.

"Tony, about last night… you really didn't need to stay. I know most people would have run away, so thank you… I appreciate it" Ziva admitted, suddenly feeling shy.

"Serious Ziva, it was nothing… Addy only woke up once and she pretty much went straight back to sleep," Tony replied using his new nickname for the 10 month old. He looked straight into Ziva's eyes and for just a moment he could see that she wasn't hiding from him. She was letting him see passed her guard. Deciding it was now or never he spoke up again.

"Ziva,… I, ahh… I think w have some things to talk about… If I find a babysitter for the girls can we go out for dinner?"

Ziva looked shocked by his request but agreed with a nod. The pair moved around the house in silence getting ready for work and getting the girls ready for day care. Fifteen minutes later they were loading everything into the car. As they need to go straight to the crime scene after the daycare centre, they were going in one car.

_Today would an interesting day._ Thought Tony.

* * *

_**Reviews would be great... hint hint.**_


	5. Nervous?

_**Well you guys should feel special! 2 updates from me in 2 days... im on a roll!!**_

* * *

As Gibbs drove to the crime scene he thought about the events of the past week. Ziva coming in late and then showing up with two young children. _Were the children hers? And if they were, why did she hide them from the team?_

His thoughts then turned to the relationship between his two agents. He knew things would change between the pair now. And it surprised him that he was glad. In their line of work they saw death every day. It is not something that husbands and wives of agents could easily understand. That was how his final three marriages ended.

Tony and Ziva would be good for each other.

McGee sat in the car next to Gibbs, having similar thoughts. The relationship between Tony and Ziva had been a long time coming. He only hoped they would take that final step towards it. Maybe then it might get Tony to ease up on the teasing. Just then he was hit on the head from behind. _No such luck_, he thought as he turned around to see Tony.

"What you looking at Probalicious?" Tony teased as he walked past on his way through to the crime scene with Ziva right behind.

Gibbs couldn't help but notice that Ziva now looked more awake and more like her old self. He chuckled to himself. Tony was already rubbing off on her.

"David, DiNozzo, Thank you for joining us… Tony, photos and sketch, McGee interview the neighbor, Ziva a word please," Gibbs spoke to his team.

Tony gently squeezed Ziva's arm to show his support.

"It's okay Tony… he was bound to find out eventually," Ziva whispered.

Gibbs and Ziva walked over by a tree.

"Ziva, I trust you. You know that… but I need you to tell me when something is going on with you."

"I know, I shouldn't have tried to keep any of this from the team… The last few days have shown me that… but you need to understand that in Mossad, having children is a weakness. It simply provides something for your Enemy to use against you," She explained.

"So, I take it those girls you had with you yesterday are yours?" Gibbs asked, pushing for an explanation.

Ziva looked down at her feet and nodded. A moment of silence passed between the pair as Ziva allowed Gibbs to process the information.

"Right," Gibbs nodded, "Now that we have that sorted… Bag and tag. I want to get this case solved before the end of the shift," He continued.

Ziva began to walk away but was called back by Gibbs.

"Oh and Ziva… Hang onto Tony, he is good for you," He said before walking away. Ziva smiled in her place. Gibbs was more like a father than her own. Deputy Director David had recommended that Ziva put the children up for adoption so as to insure they didn't interfere with her career in Mossad.

She quickly joined the rest of the team as they finished processing the crime scene. Then they separated for the drive back to NCIS headquarters.

* * *

Tony and Ziva spent the first half of the drive in a comfortable silence before Tony spoke up.

"Did everything go okay with Gibbs?"

"Yeah actually, they did… but I won't tell you the details until we go out for dinner," Ziva replied with a hint of excitement in her voice. All the nerves she had before gone now that she had cleared things up with Gibbs. Although she still had to tell McGee, Abby and Ducky she was pretty sure they had heard the rumors around the building.

"Yeah?... about that, I was thinking of asking the Director to watch the girls tonight while we have dinner. Does that sound okay?" He asked, more nervous now that they were actually making plans.

Ziva nodded as she fiddled with the switches for the radio, "What do I wear?" She asked with a laugh.

* * *

Soon they were back at NCIS and Ziva headed straight for her desk to start into some research for the case but Tony made a detour via the Directors office.

He waited patiently in the reception until Cynthia waved him through.

"What can I do for you Agent DiNozzo?" she asked.

"Actually ma'am, I'm here to ask for a favor for Ziva and me," he started. Jenny didn't think she had ever seen the young man before her ever look so nervous, and she had seen him in some rather nerve-racking situations, "I was hoping you would be able to watch the girls tonight so we can have dinner… we kinda have a few things to talk about" he continued.

Jen smiled, "Of course I'll have them, I love spending time with my favourite nieces… Drop them off at my place on your way through"

"Thanks Director, we really appreciate it," Tony said sincerely.

"It's Jenny… and it's no problem at all," She replied as Tony moved out the door, "DiNozzo," she called out after him, "Does this mean there is a Ziva and You now?"

"We'll see Jen, We'll see," and with that he left the office.

* * *

Ziva was looking up at the door to the Director's office every Ten seconds. She couldn't help but feel slightly nervous. She knew Jenny would say yes. She would do almost anything to help Ziva out with the girls. But she was feeling a bit nervous about the consequences of everyone knowing she had two young children. Yesterday they saw her as just another agent. Now she was a mother.

When she finally saw the door open and Tony walk down the stairs, she breathed a sigh of relief at seeing Tony's smile.

* * *

Gibbs walked into the Directors office without knocking.

"Oh, come on in Gibbs," Jen replied sarcastically as he shut the door behind him.

"Two of my Agents have broken more of my rules in the last day than any of my previous agents ever had," Gibbs started, "and none of them have ever dared to break rule twelve."

"Relax Jethro, they haven't actually broken rule 12 yet… tonight however…" Jenny responded with a smirk, "If anyone was going to break rule 12 it was going to be Agents David and DiNozzo… The remind me of us when we were younger."

Gibbs smirked, "Yeah well, rule 12 is pretty much out the window now… I pretty much gave Ziva my permission to break it- I must be getting soft."

A moment of silence passed between the pair as both relieved memories from their past. Gibbs coughed lightly bringing them back to the present.

"You asked to see me?!"

"Ahh yes," the Director replied nervously, "Umm, well, you see…" taking a deep breath, Jen tried to work up the nerve to speak to the man in front of her. Recent events between Tony and Ziva had made her realize she still had feelings for her long time mentor. She took a final breath.

"Tony and Ziva have asked me to babysit tonight so they can go out for dinner," She began, "so… I was wondering if maybe… you would like to… umm… have dinner..."

"Sure," Gibbs interrupted.

"WHAT!" Jen asked, shocked. She had expected him to say no, or worst still, avoid the question all together.

"I'll be there at 7… Your paying," Gibbs said before walking out of the office, leaving a shocked Jen in silence.

_**What do you think? Let me know:D**_

Elle xoxo


	6. Dinner

_**Sorry for the wait guys... please forgive me... i've hit a bit of a mental blank so if anyone has any ideas... send them my way =D  
Hope this was worth the wait... it hasnt been edited by anyone other than me so if there are any mistakes let me know and ill change them.**_

_**Elle xoxo  
**_

Tony stood on Ziva's doorstep. He had been there for close to ten minutes and was feeling very nervous about the evening. That was unusual for him. This definitely wasn't his first 'first date'… in fact, he wasn't even sure if this was a date. He knew he had some pretty strong feelings for his partner- the day they had spent together yesterday had made that clear but he wasn't so sure she felt the same way.

As he raised his arm to knock on the door, it swung open.

"Were you planning on knocking or staying out here all night," Ziva asked with a smirk on her face, "come on in, I just have to find some shoes for the girls."

She turned to walk back into the room but stopped when she realized Tony wasn't following her.

Tony was amazed! Ziva looked stunning. She had her hair down and flowing behind her. Her knee length dress was simple and black and fit her perfectly.

"Are you okay, Tony?" she asked worriedly.

"I… yes… I'm fine, it's just- You look amazing," he replied rather embarrassed.

Ziva's concerned face turned into a big grin.

"Thank you… I didn't know where we were going so I just assumed… I couldn't go wrong with a black dress."

Tony sat down and played with Tali and Adiya while Ziva got the girls things organised. She walked back into the family room just in time to hear Tony act out the voice of Tali's Barbie. He really got along so well with her kids. She burst into a fit of laughter. When Tony looked up confused she replied.

"I never thought I would see the day where you would act out the voice of a doll!" she said snapping a quick photo with her phone.

"hmm, laugh all you want, David, I'm sure I could dig up some dirt on you," he replied. Ziva immediately stopped laughing and changed the topic.

"We should probably go"

Ziva and Tony barely spoke a word to each other as they drove to the director's house. They mostly listen to Tali's recount of her day at daycare as she explained all the reasons she though Jess McCann was a 'big meanie.'

Tony carried the young girls to the door as Ziva carried the bags and rang the doorbell.

They both gasped as the door opened. They had been expecting to see Jenny but instead were met by the intense glare of their boss.

"David, DiNozzo- are too going to come in or not?... Jenny is just getting changed," he said

Tony and Ziva gave each other a quick glance. _What was their boss doing there?_ Ziva put the bags in the hall and quickly made the familiar route up stairs to the Directors room. From her spot on Tony's hip, Tali watched the exchange.

"Who are you?" she asked turning to Gibbs, "and why are you in Aunty Jenny's house?" she continued as she tightened her grip around Tony's neck. Tony was about to explain to the young girl before Gibb's interrupted.

"My name is Gibb's, I'm a friend of your Mom and Tony," he explained to the young girl.

"Gibbs is a funny name," Tali replied with a look on her face.

"I suppose it is, isn't it?" Gibbs said with a chuckle, "what's your name?"

Tali looked over at Tony to ask permission. When she received a quick nod from him she replied,

"I'm Tali, I'm 2," she said holding up 1 too many fingers.

"Wow! You're practically all grown up." Gibbs replied receiving a giggle. Tony lowered her to the floor and after a quick hug she ran off to watch the TV in the corner.

Adiya chose that moment to make herself known.

"and this is Adiya, Boss" Tony said giving the baby a gentle jiggle. Ziva and Jenny walked back into the room to find silence.

"I take it tony has introduced you to the girls" Ziva asked her boss nervously. Gibbs' face remained emotionless as he gave a quick nod.

Ziva turned to Tony, "we should go if we want to keep our reservations," she said before she turned to Jenny to show her what she had packed in the baby bag in the hall.

Tony handed the wriggling baby over to his boss just as Tali came back into the room.

"Ima? Are you and Tony going now? Do I get to stay here with Aunty Jenny and Gibbs?" Tali said with a big smile. Ziva chuckled. Gibbs was already a big hit with her daughter.

"Yes we are. You are going to stay here tonight and we will come get you in the morning," she said giving each of the girls a quick kiss.

"Yeah and if you need us for anything, you've got both our numbers," Tony added as he took his turn to say goodbye to the girls.

Then the pair left.

Over dinner they made small talk mostly about their friends at work. Slowly the conversation morphed into the kids and eventually themselves.

"Ziva, I think we have some things to talk about…," Tony started, stumbling over his words, "… I'm not even sure what I want to say, but spending time with you and the girls this weekend has made me realize… just how much I care about you…" Ziva stared at Tony blankly, not really sure what he was talking about. Tony sighed. It was now or never!

"… Ziva, I think I'm in love with you."

Ziva gasped and dropped her fork midway to her mouth, Tony Panicked, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said anything," he said flustered.

"No! Tony… don't be sorry… I was just shocked… I didn't know you felt the same way," Ziva replied shyly.

Now it was Tony's turn to be shocked, "does this mean… what… that?" He said lost for words.

Ziva flashed him a grin and nodded, "yes Tony, I think I love you too!"

Tony's face lit up. He stood and pulled Ziva up too, "let's get out of here."

He paid the bill and they walked hand in hand to the car. Tony couldn't resist any longer, In fact, he was surprised he had made it that long. As he opened the car door for Ziva he gently grabbed her behind the neck and pulled her lips to his.

The kiss was only brief, but it was full of passion and it spike a million things to them both.

When they arrived at Ziva's place, she invited him up. They were now laying on the couch watching a movie with Ziva's head resting lightly on Tony's chest. Every once and awhile, one of them would look over at the other and smile. When the final credits were rolling across the screen, Ziva stood pulling Tony with her. She pulled him towards the bedroom, silently inviting him to stay the night.

_**Please review... make me happy =D**_


	7. Waking up with you

_**A/N: Hi all, so its been a very VERY long time! Since i last posted, i've finished my final internship/ practicum and graduated fully qualified, i worked around Perth for a little while but not a lot available at the moment so i moved, in fact i completely moved, i now live in a tiny country town, 205km out of the city and have a job that i love. I'm still adjusting to living by myself but so far so good. Anyway, i wrote this a while back and would really like to get back into the writing. **_

_**I'm looking for someone to help me out a bit in terms of editing and motivating me. If you can help out, please LET ME KNOW!! It would be good if you live in the city as i don't have the best TV access and whether or not we get NCIS is a completely different story!**_

_**Let me know what you think, and if you can help.**_

_**Ziva xoxo**_

Tony woke late the next morning. He was surprised to find Ziva still asleep in his arms. He watched her sleep for a while, thinking about how lucky he was. Slowly Ziva woke, opening her eyes to meet Tony's as he gently ran an arm up and down her bare back.

She leaned over and pushed her lips gently against his

"As much as I would love to stay here right now, we need to go get the girls soon," she said pulling apart.

The pair moved comfortably around the room getting their things organised when they were suddenly interrupted by the ringing of the home phone.

"David," Ziva answered.

"Hi Ziva, it's Jen… we didn't wake you did we?" Jen asked tentatively.

"No… we were just getting ready to come get the girls," Ziva replied without thinking.

"_We?_... does this mean you and Tony are together now?" Jen asked excitedly. Ziva could hear Gibbs mumble something in the background about rules.

Ziva looked over at Tony as he stepped out of the shower and smiled, "Yeah, I guess we are," she said with a smile.

"Well, we were calling to see if it would be okay to take the girls to the zoo today, and to see if you wanted to come," Jen explained, "Tony would of course be welcome too, in fact lets invite the whole team… I'll call them in a minute."

"We'd love too," Ziva said answering for the both of them, "I'm sure the girls would love it, we'll come over in half an hour." She hung up the phone just as Tony wrapped his arms around her waist kissing the back of her neck.

"We are going to the zoo!" Ziva cried excitedly as she began to run around and get things for them and the girls organised.

They arrived at the Director's house just on time. Tony leant over with a smile and gave Ziva a quick kiss on the lips as he rang the doorbell. After a few seconds the door was answered by Jen who was bouncing Adiya on her hip. The baby squealed and held out her arms at the sight of her mother. The four of them walked into the kitchen to find Tali sitting of Gibbs' lap.

"Ima!" the young girls shriek filled the air as she jumped off Gibbs' lap and ran into her mothers open arms, "we're going to the zoo!" she exclaimed, "we are going to see lions and tigers and Grandpa Gibbs said they might even have Koalas!" The 'almost three-year old' danced around in a blur of movement.

"_Grandpa Gibbs?_" Ziva's question was met with a shrug. Finally Tony could not resist himself any longer.

"So Boss, you spent the night here did ya?" he said with a smirk. Gibbs returned a glare as he noticed Ziva and Tony holding hands.

"Spent the night at Ziva's did ya DiNozzo?" Gibbs returned. This quickly wiped the smirk off the younger agents face as the two of them came to a silent agreement.

"We're going to meet the others out the front of the zoo after breakfast," Jen explained as she attempted to help Ziva get her bouncing young girls into warm clothes. Finally the group got into two cars. Ziva and Jen in one and Gibbs, Tony and the girls in another.

Tony knew Ziva probably had some things to talk over with Jen but he was slightly nervous about riding over with Gibbs. Okay… slightly nervous was an understatement. He was terrified. After a rather uncomfortable , silent start to the trip, Gibbs broke the silence.

"Listen carefully DiNozzo, coz I'm only gonna say this once…" he started, "you know I think of you and Ziva as my kids, but I swear, if you screw this up, I'm not gonna hang around to pick up the pieces for you."

"I know Boss… I'm not going to screw this up," Tony said quickly glancing over at Gibbs before returning his concentration to the road. The boss saw a look of sincerity in the agents eyes and smiled.

"Good, now that that's sorted… I promised a certain young girl that we would have a fun day at the zoo."

Tony pulled into a vacant parking lot right across from the zoo just after Ziva and Jen. He helped Jen get the girls out of the car while Ziva set up the stroller for the youngest.

Jen and Gibbs led the way with Tali sitting on Gibbs' shoulders. Tony smiled over at Ziva and grabbed her hand. Silently the group headed over to meet Abby and McGee waiting for them by the zoo entrance. Ziva inwardly smirked. This was going to be fun, Abby was going to go nuts once she found out about the girls!

Ziva and Jen had had an interesting conversation on the way over. She had explained how Tony had stayed the night to look after the girls so Ziva could sleep and the up to and after dinner last night. Jen had been so excited for her old friend. She had watched the pair dance around each other for months and was glad they had finally come to their senses. She was also glad Ziva had finally explained the whole situation to Tony.

Ziva smiled. Today would be a good day.

_**Please review! I'm out of practice and need all the advice i can get!**_

_**xxxx  
**_


End file.
